Tahini-Marinated Chicken Thighs with Cucumber-and-Tomato Salad

If you thought tahini functioned mainly as a condiment, you’ll love it in a marinade—it makes the chicken buttery tender without an overwhelming amount of sesame flavor in the finished dish. It also helps the chicken char nicely on the grill. The chopped salad is inspired by the Israeli original, usually stuffed into pita pockets with shawarma (slow-grilled meat) and drizzled with tahini sauce. We reserve some of the tahini mixture from the marinade for topping the finished dish. You can also substitute couscous, cooked bulgur, or toasted whole-wheat pita wedges for the rice.

Ingredients

Chicken:

1/4 cup tahini (sesame seed paste), well stirred

3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

3 tablespoons olive oil

3 tablespoons water

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary

2 teaspoons grated lemon rind

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1 garlic clove, finely grated

1 small shallot, finely grated

8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs (about 1 1/2 lb.)

Cooking spray

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Salad:

1 1/2 cups chopped cucumber

1 1/2 cups chopped tomato

1 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1/4 cup chopped fresh mint

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon olive oil

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

2 cups hot cooked brown rice

Nutritional Information

Calories 448

Fat 18.6g

Satfat 3.5g

Monofat 9g

Polyfat 31g

Protein 39g

Carbohydrate 31g

Fiber 4g

Cholesterol 160mg

Iron 4mg

Sodium 544mg

Calcium 76mg

Sugars 3g

Est. added sugars 0g

Calories 448

Fat 18.6g

Satfat 3.5g

Monofat 9g

Polyfat 31g

Protein 39g

Carbohydrate 31g

Fiber 4g

Cholesterol 160mg

Iron 4mg

Sodium 544mg

Calcium 76mg

Sugars 3g

Est. added sugars 0g

How to Make It

Step 1

To prepare chicken, combine first 10 ingredients in a bowl. Place 1/4 cup tahini mixture in a small bowl; reserve. Place remaining tahini mixture and chicken in a large ziplock plastic bag; seal, turning to coat chicken. Refrigerate 8 hours or overnight.